I Love You
by NakanoHana
Summary: A prince and a merman, two beings that were never meant to live in the same world.
1. The Love of a Merman

The sea glistened brightly that calm summer morning. The waves rolled in and out lazily with the tide, and the water shone a vibrant, almost crystal blue. It was an ideal day for anyone in the kingdom to be out enjoying the water, but no one was here to swim or relax at this particular beach. No person save one.

Axel kicked up a small mound of sand with his bare foot, only to spit and shake his head as the wind blew it right back at him. If anyone else had been around to witness the young prince's blunder, he most certainly would have been embarrassed. But since he was alone, he laughed it off only after a brief, irritated pause, continuing his trek towards the shore. The sand there was wet and more tightly packed; soon it wouldn't be too hot to tread upon, and he wouldn't have to worry about sand in his mouth, eyes, or hair.

It was nice being out there by himself. He felt a bit guilty that he had slipped away from his royal duties, signing a couple of documents and enjoying a mid-afternoon meal with his father. But today was a bit more relaxed than he had known of late, with no more foreign ambassadors to greet, balls to attend, or princesses to turn away. His father would understand that he needed some time alone after all that had been going on. He wouldn't be too heartbroken by the absence.

Though maybe he should have told someone before sneaking down to the beach...

No matter. If anyone asked, Riku could tell them he was indisposed. The silverette was the only one who he trusted with his secret outings, and although the older boy did not approve of it entirely, he held silent for Axel's sake. And the redhead was forever in his gratitude.

"Axel!"

The prince blinked, drawn from his wandering thoughts as he registered the call. Glancing around in the direction of the ocean, a grin drew its way across his face, as a blonde head popped out of the water on his right.

"Axel!"

The redhead took off running toward the water, uncaring even when his clothes soaked through in the water, knee-deep. He waded deeper into the water, until it was up to his shoulders, and the blonde was swimming towards him, jumping out of the water every so often, revealing a glistening, blue tail.

"Oh, Axel! I've missed you so much!"

With no more warning, the other was in front of him, leaping out of the water and into his waiting arms.

"Roxas! I've missed you t- Hey!" The force of the blonde tackling him head on sent them both tumbling back into the water. Axel fell under and almost rolled in the next wave, but Roxas sensed that he was pushing him down and moved off his body, instead moving to wade beside him. The redhead resurfaced with a mighty gasp.

"I'm glad you're happy to see me, but geesh! You could have killed me, you know?"

"I'm sorry!" the mer-boy said earnestly, his face a mixed between humor and worry. He knew Axel was partially just teasing him. "I just haven't seen you in a month! I was beginning to think you forgot about me!"

Axel couldn't help but laugh at him, taking a playful swat at his head.

"I doubt I could forget you, even if I lived a thousand years, Rox." Catching sight of something glimmering just below the surface by his side, Axel grabbed it with both hands, earning a squeak from Roxas. He lifted the end of the heavy scaled tail and held it up out of the water just enough for them both to see. "Case and Point."

Roxas chuckled, though he still looked a bit uncomfortable. Axel released his tail gently, knowing he had grabbed a sensitive part. Most mermaids and mermen apparently had rock-hard sharp scales on their tales, making them efficient and deadly weapons. But Roxas came from a different class of mermen, from a different part of the ocean. His tail was a bit softer, more vulnerable.

The two made their way to shore, casually chatting about recent events in their separate lives. When they reached the sand, Axel laid down beside the other boy and listened raptly, as he ran a hand up and down his arm and stared into the most entrancing blue eyes he had ever seen. Not even the ocean contested their deep, ethereal beauty.

"So my life's been hell. Too busy for my liking," he said, giving the other a small, fond smile. "How about you? What's life like down in the undersea kingdom?"

Roxas rolled his eyes. "The king is making more stupid laws. He's even cracking down on the peasant sector, which is making my parents super cranky. They almost wouldn't let me go out today."

Axel looked worried. "They won't go looking for you, will they? You know if they find you, they'll-"

"Yeah, yeah. I've heard that all before," the boy mimicked back. "'Merfolk who endanger the realm will be exiled.'"

"And that doesn't worry you?"

Roxas shrugged. "Not really. Whatever happens happens, you know?"

The redhead still looked unconvinced, slowly drawing his hand back and away.

"You can't really mean that, Rox. What about your home? And your family?"

The blonde didn't answer, but looked away for a moment. It passed in anxious silence, and when he spoke again, the voice faltered a little.

"They don't really matter to me. As long as I can see you," a hopeless smile turned up to meet him, "As long as I can be near you, even just a little while, I'm happy."

Axel felt a pang in his heart at that. With that came a wave of sadness that washed over him, making him feel colder than even the sea water could. He shook his head with a sigh.

"Roxas...You know I can't. Legs, remember? As long as you are bound to the sea, and I'm bound to the land, we couldn't."

The boy's expression was heartbreaking. "But...Then, if I were exiled, I could be free. And come to see you more often. I could-"

"You'd be eaten in no time." The prince hated saying it, but it was true. From what he'd been told, the merfolk had to travel in groups when they were outside the cities, otherwise dangerous creatures like sharks and whales could pick them off very easily. It was a danger for Roxas to be coming here at all, on his own, without telling anyone. And he knew the merboy was fibbing; his family did mean a lot to him, and he would be sad if he could never see them again. Hell, he was interacting with a human, one of the greatest threats to merfolk of all. He would be lucky if the king didn't have him executed for such treason.

Axel continued, even though he knew he must have sounded so harsh. "Even if you did manage to stay out of danger, I can't come here all the time. I have a duty to my people, my father; I can't give it up for you. For a life I could never live."

The blonde looked down, his eyes close to tears, and Axel let his heart melt, if only for that moment.

"Roxas...It's the truth. Please understand..." When the merboy didn't look at him, he sighed. "I'm sorry." He leaned close and gently pulled the boy in for a kiss. He wanted it to be comforting, but in a way, also final. This was dangerous. He hadn't thought much of it when he met the boy by the shore six years earlier, when they were young. It was a chance meeting, and he never regretted it, or the time they had spent together since, but now he realized that it should have ended that day. He should have brushed it off as a dream, never agreed to met with the curious, bubbly little merboy again. It had only hurt them both in the end...

It was his mistake and his fault. And he would suffer for it, but it pained him to know that Roxas would suffer more. He knew the blonde loved him...

Roxas kissed back desperately, almost latched onto his face, as if holding him there longer would delay the inevitable. He must have known what Axel was trying to say. He just didn't want to admit that it was true, or that it was necessary. He pushed Axel down and held him there, kissing as though the redhead would draw his last breath from his lips.

Finally, the prince found the strength to push him away. Salty tears were spilling over the younger boy's cheeks, and Axel yelped as he felt arms thrown around his neck as he tried to sit up, pulling him back in.

"Roxas, no."

The merboy ignored him, pulling his shirt, his hair, anything. He clung to everything he could to keep the boy from leaving.

"ROXAS, I SAID NO."

The blonde gasped, pulling back, eyes wide. There was irritation on his friend's face, muffled anger in his eyes. So different from the boy he had met and fell in love with, that faithful day...

Slowly, the blonde relaxed his arms and let them fall to the sand beside him. He looked down at Axel with as much hope and pitifulness as he could muster.

"Please, Axel. Please just promise me."

The redhead turned his head away. "No. I can't, Roxas. You should know that."

"No, hear me out! Please! Just come back to the sea! I'll be careful! I won't be cast out! I promise-"

There was a resounding slap as Axel's palm connected with his cheek, and for a few minutes, Roxas was stunned into silence. The other boy, however, was not.

"You can't promise that. Now, you have to stop being silly and just go already. Go back where you belong."

Axel moved away from him and stood on the sand. He looked down at the merboy with as much cold indifference as he could, seeing him rub his cheek and sniffle heavily. He felt like such an ass for being this way, but it was for the best. Obviously Roxas had been deluding himself that this could all work out, and it couldn't. And he had fed that lie. He had loved him back...

It was because he loved him he had to do this. The only way to protect him was to cut him off. Make him never want to see another human again.

As he turned to walk away, he heard shifting on the sand.

"Axel, p-please, wait. I...I love you..."

His heart clenched painfully, but he didn't turn. He had to leave, before he broke down and cried himself.

He took one step after another, away from the water. When he reached the hole in the cliff wall, which led back to town, he turned back, expecting the boy to be gone. But Roxas was still there, following him with his gaze. He couldn't see it from there, but there was no mistake. His head was lowered, but angled straight at him. The merboy was stubborn, refusing to move from that spot.

"Tch." Axel ran all the way back through town. Not once did he answer a greeting, or stop to catch his breath. People looked on in confusion and surprise as their prince ran past. Knowing what his face must have looked like, he wasn't surprised.

He didn't stop at the castle either, even though he was breathless and near fainting. He ran past the greeters, maidservants, and others, until he reached his room. With an anguished cry, he threw the doors open, slammed them again, and threw himself on his bed with a sob.

"Stupid! Stupid!" He yelled, pouding his fist into the soft down, over and over again.

He cried for what seemed like hours, but it couldn't have been that. The sun dipped a little lower in the sky outside his windows, as he saw through the silken curtains, but whenever he mustered the courage and calm to look up and out through the window, he couldn't bring his eyes to meet the sea. It was finally sinking in. He would never see Roxas again. He told himself that, but still...

How could he ever go back there again? Knowing where they had often lain in the sand, laughing and talking until the sun set on that secluded shore. Where he had given his first kiss, a shy and innocent boy then, but so happy that it had been his then best friend, who he trusted and cared for so much. Where Roxas had brought him to explore that cove, or taken him to swim with a small school of bottle-nose dolphins...

Tears continually welled in his eyes now, though he pressed them to the bed and wished with all his might that they would dry and go away. The ocean would always call to him, but he couldn't face it if Roxas was there. How would he ever go back?

"I warned you about this."

The redhead raised his weary head, only to find Riku standing by his window, gazing out it with a cold, emotionless face. The prince growled at his assistant.

"You never told me this would happen."

"But I warned you," he said firmly. "I warned you it was dangerous to get involved with that child. You did not heed my words, and now you have to suffer for it."

"Shut up!" Axel yelled back. Riku was his close friend and most loyal servant, keeping his secret despite his dislike of the situation, but now he was being a downright ass. Inside, Axel knew he was just stating what needed to be said, but he didn't want to hear it right now. He'd already heard it too many times today.

"He's still there, you know."

"What? The prince sat bolt upright. "What do you mean?"

Riku huffed, clearly annoyed with him. "Roxas. He's still there."

Axel scrambled out of bed, almost getting his legs tangled in the messy sheets. He ran to the window beside Riku, glancing at the shore now. Sure enough, he could see the shape of the boy sitting on the sand, still.

"Idiot! He can't just sit there like that!" Axel's was the only window that looked out over the royalty's private beach; the only other windows on that side were too low to see over the natural rock wall that stood between the kingdom and the sea. It shielded them from bad storms and foreign invasion, as it stretched around the castle and almost to where the peasant and lesser nobility beaches were. Regardless, Axel's father allowed men to fish on their beach every now and again, because they were plentiful there, and someone would come across the boy soon. If that happened...

"Where are you going?" Riku asked harshly.

"I have to do something!" he snapped back, ready to burst out the door again. "Someone's going to find him! I can't let that happen!"

"How? Can you protect him forever?"

Axel froze as a hard hand dropped onto his shoulder.

"If you go back out there, all you'll be doing is making this harder. He'll know he has you on a string, and he'll keep doing this. I know. He'll throw himself into danger hoping you'll come and save him. He's desperate."

The redhead snarled. "How would you know? You don't know him at all!"

"I know enough," Riku said, more calmly now. His grip tightened on the prince's shoulder, firm but not painful, and Axel took a deep, calming breath. He was right.

"You're right. You're right, it's just..." He cast a longing glance at the window. "I don't want to hurt him, or let him hurt himself. It's my fault he's like this."

"I don't know about that." Riku took a step closer, finally giving him a more sympathetic look. Not by much, but still. "But what's done is done. Going out there would just be more stupidity added in with everything else you've done."

Axel choked a sad laugh, raising a hand to wipe his forehead. He squeezed, applying soothing pressure.

"I guess."

It wasn't what he wanted, though. He wanted to run back to that shore and hold the boy in his arms. He knew how much Roxas had to be hurting; whether he was in shock or just too stubborn to leave, Axel couldn't guess. Either way, merfolk needed water to breathe, so he couldn't stay up on land for much longer. There was no way Roxas would dry himself out like that. That was a terrible way to die.

Soon, he would leave, and things would go back to the way they should be. Normal, safe...


	2. The End

No matter how hard he tried, however, Axel couldn't move on. He attended more of his father's important meetings, went out among the people as much as possible, but he still didn't like any of it. He still turned down every maiden who came to call, seeking his hand. He still snuck away every now and again, but he couldn't bring himself to go to the ocean. He couldn't face the merboy if he was there, and he always feared he would be. Though he did find the courage to look out the window, sometimes sure he could see Roxas again, waiting on the sand looking up at the castle.

And other times, in the light of the full moon, if he left his window open to the world, he could hear a soft song on the wind. It was beautiful, but truly inhuman, and bore a sadness that always touched his heart. Whether or not it was real, he could never decide. But he never forgot it, even when he finally succumbed to dreams. If he finally succumbed to them, that is.

And he always traced it back to the ocean.

He would lie awake and often wonder. He had made the right choice...hadn't he? If so, why did he feel so empty now?

Axel's heart would then long in his dreams. Long for that smile, that gentle, delicate face; those beautiful eyes that sparkled like the sea at midday, that hair that shone like the sun. Was he still heartbroken? Had he found the strength to go on with life in his home? Axel dearly hoped he had, for his own sake. He may never forget, and he seriously doubted Roxas would, but he still...hoped, anyway...

One day, months later, Axel was compelled to follow his uncle on a fishing expedition. His mother's youngest brother had long since abandoned his duties in the other kingdom, and had come to live with them when the King and Queen had married. Free of all but few social obligations, the man was left to pursue his interests, and his current one was fishing.

"Luxord, I really don't feel up to this."

"Nonsense, Axel! This is just what you need!" the man said, patting him hard on the back. Instead of taking out a boat, like most fisherman, the blonde was insisting on fishing from the shore. If other men had had luck catching things inland, then so could he. "You're old man has told me you've been feeling down of late. This will cheer you up in no time!"

But, in fact, it was doing quiet the opposite. Though he had missed the sand at his feet, the waves rolling in and out, the cooling breeze that followed out to the sea. It was beautiful today, but it reminded him too much of vibrant, sorrowful blue eyes.

Riku was with them, too, as their assistant. He knew Axel's obligation to his uncle, and also knew how hard this could potentially be for the boy. So he had come, standing almost like a shadow at their sides.

"Now come, boy! Make yourself useful! The good fish won't wait!"

Axel grumbled a little at that. It was a bit too early in the day, but then, most fishermen encouraged being out when the fish were feeding. Increased the chances of a prize catch.

"Fine." He tossed his line back, then out, and tried to calm his heart. He was there, the place he had dashed a kind young merman's heart just months ago. Where was he now, he began to wonder? Was he still alright? He still loved the boy so much, and wanted him to be safe and happy. He wanted a normal life for him, back with his own people...

"Oh! Looks like you caught something, Axel!"

He blinked, shaking away his haze. "What? Oh! Hold on!" He reeled it in and tugged at the line, and out of the water jumped a little blue fish. "Wow! Riku, help me pull it in!" The thing looked so small, but it felt so strong!

The other boy came up behind him and together they pulled. Soon they had the fish in a bucket of salt water beside them, and Axel watched it swim around the small space for a moment, as his uncle chuckled.

"That's the thrill of it, boy! The catch and then the kill!"

Axel looked up, momentarily aghast. "Kill?"

"Of course!" Luxord beamed, grabbing the fish out of the water with one hand. He took a knife in his other hand, and slit its gills before the prince's very eyes. The fish's gasping and squirming stopped quickly, and soon, after a few tiny splutters, the life drained from it, leaving just a limp little thing in the man's grasp.

"I would have let you do the honors, but you haven't fished before, have you? I figured I'd do it for you once, and show you so you could do it on you own."

The redhead just looked at the little fish. It had fought with all it's might to get away, only to be caught and trapped. No matter how it struggled, it died so quickly with the tiniest little knick. How could he be expected to do such a horrible thing?

Tears almost began to well in his eyes, as his mind supplied a horrible picture of another 'fish' he knew. What if something had happened to Roxas? The uncertainty made him anxious, and the picture in his mind did not fade. Of Roxas, caught in some human trap; Roxas, gasping and choking as some heartless fisherman slit the gills along his throat. Or worse...

"Axel?" Luxord asked. "You okay boy?"

No. If he'd been caught, the whole kingdom would have heard about it. Merfolk were legendary to his people; myth. No one would kill one if they could capture it alive. But then...what about the foreign fishermen? Could they catch one and leave without revealing it to anyone?

Or what if something had happened in the ocean? As far as he could see, Axel couldn't protect Roxas from anything. Having cast him away, he couldn't see him or guarantee his safety...

"Axel! You're spacing!"

"What?" His head snapped up, and the tears almost broke through. Roxas...

Luxord gave him a scrutinizing look, but his face softened quickly. "You okay?"

The prince took a minute to wipe his eyes. He missed the dark, discouraging look on Riku's face.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just fine. Sorry...tired."

He watched his uncle fish for a while afterward, but he couldn't bring himself to do more than that. His mind was plagued with the unknown, wondering all the ways that something could have gone wrong. He thought he had thought everything through that day, and decided, but now he was filled with guilt and doubt. He left his childhood friend, the one he had fallen in love with, without so much as a goodbye, let alone an answer.

"Axel...I love you..."

He pressed hands to his head and gripped his hair tightly, hoping the pull would distract him. That voice, so full of emotion. It was timid and lost, fearful of rejection, but still so...sure. It was full of conviction; full of honesty and love. That voice had haunted his dreams for as long as he could remember, ever since that day. That was why he couldn't sleep, and why he felt so poor even when he tried to be at ease. His father must have seen it. How could a soul at the castle not have? The prince was like an open book with his emotions...

And Riku watched him, while Luxord was busy. He shook his head, but Axel couldn't stop even if he tried. His heart had been breaking for so long, and now finally it seemed ready to fall apart. The guilt, the utter shame he felt for what he had said and done. It was unmeasurable.

Roxas...

"Well, that's enough for me." It was mid afternoon by the time the fishing was all done. The bucket had been poured out, and was now filled up with dead fish of all colors. Luxord hosted the tackle and bait and slung his bag over his shoulder. "Do you want me to take your line back with me?"

"Sure."

"Alright then." Luxord seemed to notice the trip hadn't cheered him up at all. He stooped over where the prince sat on the sand and clasped a hand to his shoulder. "Just come back when you're ready."

He left, and Axel and Riku sat on the beach for a while, listening to the sounds of the sea as Axel collected his thoughts.

Sometime later, the silverette stood. "I'm going back inside. I'll leave you be, as long as you promise me you can handle it."

The redhead looked up and saw the seriousness in his eyes. He could sense worry from his friend, but right now, he was too worried himself to consider it.

Just as he prepared to speak, there came a strange cry. Both boys were on their feet instantly, glancing around frantically for the cause of the noise. The beach still looked calm though, on either side. Axel scratched his head.

"What the hell?" Could that have just been his imagination.

No. Riku had heard it too.

"Help..."

Axel thought the voice in his head sounded familiar, but he could swear he heard it out loud as well, just as if a person had whispered it right beside him. It was...blocked somehow, not completely clear, but the redhead understood it well enough. Turning toward the sea, at last, he saw...

Splashing. A large dorsal fin moving, as if thrusting forward, towards the being who was struggling. A spluttering cry, muffled by choking and water. A strange smell, and in the water nearby took on a strange color...

Blood.

"Oh my god!" he cried. Was that a person out there? What were they doing, swimming so far up the private beach? How'd they not notice this person before? "What are we going to do?"

Riku shook his head. "Axel, we can't. They-"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, WE CAN'T? SOMEONE'S IN DANGER! I HAVE TO HELP!" Drawing his ceremonial dagger from his belt, the prince raced to the surf and dove in, ignoring the usual cold sting of the water. Truly, he was terrified of sharks, but hesitation could cost this person their life. No one deserved a fate so terrible, not even a trespasser. He couldn't let someone die, especially not when they were right in front of him.

Not when he could do something.

He reached the two forms, just as the shark lunged for the sinking body again. Whoever they were, Axel guessed that they had fainted from shock. They were no longer screaming or spluttering, but the shark was still lunging forward, snapping its teeth and grabbing for his flesh. The prince raised his dagger and aimed when he saw its black, beady eye.

Even after it contacted, he stabbed again and again, everywhere, wincing when he felt the shark's teeth graze his arm, cutting it. After half a minute, the thing seemed to decide it had suffered enough. It sank into the water and swam away, leaving Axel bleeding. But the person he'd saved was bleeding more...

"Hold on! I'm going to help you!" he shouted, even though the person was still unconscious. He wrapped his arms around a surprisingly slender waist and pulled, hoisting the person up and against his chest. He felt his exposed skin tickled by soft, wet hair, and that moment, something scaly brushed against his leg, and he froze. He looked down in horror.

"Roxas?"

Sure enough, the merboy was in his arms. The one he had dreamed of so often. Here again, but now bleeding, dying...

"Roxas, hold on!" He tried pulling the boy away, only to be jerked back to the same spot by some unseen force. "What the-"

The boy wasn't moving, nor resisting against him, but something under the water was. Axel let go briefly and dove down, despite his fear the shark would return soon, out of the murky depths. Or maybe another would, smelling this much blood in the water...

He reached down blindly, feeling something coarse and rough. A net, maybe? A heavy fishing net, made of coarse rope, one more used when out further at sea. He cut it with his knife, and instantly the boy came free, and Axel wasted no time in dragging the boy to shore and pulling him up on the sand. He winced at the trail of blood left behind.

Even Riku hissed when he saw the cuts, all over the body, especially the torso. "What happened to him?"

"He just- I- I DON'T KNOW!' Axel cried, fisting his hair. He had to think of something. Roxas was breathing shallowly and bleeding far too much. He needed to do something quick, but all his medical supplies were back at home.

"I have to take him back!" The redhead scooped the smaller boy into his arms, staggering a little at how heavy he was, tail and all. Riku looked annoyed.

"You can't do that! What did I warn you about?"

"It was following YOUR dumb warning that got me into this mess!" he snapped back, looking down at the near lifeless boy clutched against his chest. Roxas couldn't die. Not after he had fought so hard, given up so much to protect him.

Riku looked ready to disagree, but Axel begged. "Please! There's stuff in my room! I have to take him back! If I don't, he'll die!"

"And how do you expect to get him to the castle? Someone will see you, and then what'll happen?"

"I DON'T KNOW, OKAY? I JUST HAVE TO TRY!" he cried, and that seemed to stop the silverette from saying anymore. Riku saw the look on his face, considered for a moment, then let out a heavy sigh.

"Alright. But I'm not happy about this. You want my help, I take it?"

Axel nodded, and together they left for home, rushing to make it before it was too late.

...

Riku helped him to sneak the boy back unnoticed, somehow, and once safely in the prince's rooms, they filled the large bath tub in his bathroom with as much water as he could, gently cleaning Roxas off and making sure he could still breathe when he needed to. It was hard to bandage cuts because he needed to stay in the water, but they did the best they could. When Riku finally left to clean up all traces of blood they may have left in their haste, Axel watched over the little merboy quietly, making sure he was comfortable and, most importantly, alive. He ran his fingers through soft hair, kissed his forehead gently, murmuring soft, sad apologies.

"I'm sorry, Roxas. So sorry..."

After hours of watching, and turning down dinner firmly, the redhead saw his charge beginning to stir. Eyes wide, heart speeding up ever so slightly, he leaned over the large tub and waited eagerly, face brightening by multitudes as the boy moved, slowly. Delicate eyelids fluttered open, and hazy blue eyes that he had missed so much squinted up at him.

"Axel?" he groaned softly, rubbing his eyes a little. The movement of his arm rubbed against a cut on the side of his chest, and he hissed in pain.

"I'm right here, Roxas," he said with a soft smile, reaching out to trace a soothing hand over the blonde's forehead. "Be careful. That shark got you pretty good."

"Nnnn...shark?...Oh." Realization dawned on his face, then shock, then pain. He looked up at Axel sadly. "You...did you save me?"

The redhead nodded, giving him a weak grin. "Of course, Rox. You think I'd just leave you out there?"

Blue eyes looked down, broken and lonely. "You did before..." he muttered.

Axel winced. "But it's not like I was leaving you out there to die, Rox!" Removing his hand, he placed it back on the edge of the tub and gripped hard. "I did it so I could protect you, don't you understand?"

Roxas just stared at his scaly lap, unable to meet his eyes. Axel wanted to smack him, making the prince doubt himself like this! He had good intentions, but the boy didn't see it that way, and he was just making this worse. He needed him to understand...

He looked up at a faint murmur. "Axel...I was banished..."

His eyes widened considerably. "What? Why?"

"My own parents," the boy murmured again, his voice now tinted with betrayal. "They gave me in willing. They didn't even say goodbye. But that wasn't enough. The king ordered me to be left out there to starve or get eaten, even though I told them you wouldn't hurt us. They didn't believe me. No one did..."

Small hands clenched into small fists in his lap, and tears began to spill down Roxas's cheeks. Axel felt a few tears of pity threatening to spill in his eyes as well. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around pale shoulders, drawing him close and letting him cry into his sleeve. It wasn't long before Roxas really started to sob, and Axel shoved all decor aside and climbed in the tub with him, holding him and even crying with him. They'd been so lonely without each other, the painful goodbye still weighing heavily on both their hearts.

"Y-You should have just left me there, Axel," the blonde sobbed. "At least then, I wouldn't have to live with this! You didn't want me, my own parents didn't want me! I'm not worth anything to anyone!" he cried, clinging tightly to the prince despite his words. Axel patted his back and shook his head.

"Don't say that, Rox. Nothing is worth dying for, okay? I do want you, I just...I wanted you to be safe and happy. You couldn't have that life with me. I'm not a merman. It would have been a lie to say I would always be with you."

"No one would ever m-miss me."

Axel touched his cheek and raised those sad eyes to meet his. "That's not true, Rox. I would..." They held each other for a long time, and Axel assured him that he had only missed him, loved him since that day.

"Please don't leave me!" Roxas only cried harder. "Please, I don't have anywhere else to g-go!"

The older boy's heart melted at his pleas. He took that face gently in his hands and smiled at him sadly.

"I should have known leaving wouldn't help. You're the stubbornest person I've ever met."

The blonde choked a laugh, and Axel rubbed his thumbs along the sides of that face, tender and loving.

"I don't know how this can work, but...I'm willing to try." Letting Roxas go now would just keep him coming back until something worse happened. Because now he had hope. That tearful face lit up, and Axel couldn't help but smile fondly, whether or not this damned them. "For you, Roxas. I love you."

Their kisses were tender and comforting, and in each other's arms, the two finally found happiness again. It didn't matter that they were as different as day and night; their love was precious and pure and unyielding. Axel knew he could no more leave Roxas now than the boy could leave him. Somehow, he would make this work. If Roxas would be happy with him, he would find a way.

For love.


	3. Alternate Ending

In time, Axel moved on. He met a wonderful girl that Christmas, and married her the next. He had two children, two handsome young boys, and raised them in the castle by the sea. He saw his father retire and live in his now ripe, happy old age. And Riku stayed by his side, helping him even as he grew to be a man. He confided in the silverette with everything, and his wife with almost as much. Only one outsider ever knew of his most precious secret...

Roxas never appeared again on that shore, but sometimes at night, Axel would lie awake and think only of him. He would remember the eyes that hypnotized him, the soft skin that never burned, the hair that never lost its playful spike. He would feel a tear at that, but consoled himself that now, at least, Roxas was safe. He had made the right choice.

Still, in the light of the full moon, if he left his window open to the world, he could always hear a soft song on the wind. It was beautiful, but truly inhuman, and bore a sadness that always touched his heart. Whether or not it was real, he could never decide. But he never forgot it, even when he finally succumbed to dreams.

And he always traced it back to the ocean.

One day, he was walking along that private shore, his beautiful queen on his arm, his two sons splashing and playing in the shallow water as they ran. It was a perfect day, not unlike that day, years ago. It had taken almost five years to be able to set foot on the sand again, but his wife had begged and pleaded. A nice meal by the sea would be so nice. Just the four of them...

"Daddy? What's that?"

The young king glanced up ahead, looking to where his youngest pointed. His wife gasped sadly when she caught sight of the dark form huddled on the sand.

"Oh no. Some poor thing must have been beached." Turning to Axel, she said, "Will you go see what it is, dear? I'll take the boys back so we can have our picnic."

Shaking away his daze, the redhead smiled at her. "Of course." A kiss. "You go on ahead."

When they were on their way down the shore again, Axel walked toward the lifeless animal, expecting to see a shark or maybe a small dolphin. It was always sad to see something wash up, helpless and in pain until it dried out or, more mercifully, starved to death. This one was unusually small, he noticed, and there was seaweed all over it, covering many parts of its body. Through a gap in the seaweed, he saw a fisherman's net tangled around it, and past that, a shimmer of blue scales...

In a split second, he was running to the thing. He reached it and dropped to his knees, pulling aside the seaweed and netting...

It was Roxas.

"No..." Axel gasped, falling back on his butt in the sand and scooting back slightly. The boy was dead; a mess caught in a tangled fisherman's net and seaweed. When he finally managed to calm down and try to examine the body, his hands shaking terribly as he moved to free him, Axel found a small, silver hook plunged into a tiny, bloody hole in the boy's throat. A second one stuck out from his beautiful tail. Axel couldn't even tell if the boy had drowned, starved, or just dried up and suffocated.

"Roxas..."

He didn't even know now. Had Roxas been found and banished? Or had he really just been out there ever since, waiting for him? Had it really been worth it, to forsake everything he had ever known and loved, for an uncertain future?

The now-dried blood that coated his body seemed to say otherwise, but Axel didn't have the heart to curse him for his foolishness. Not now...

For the first time in years, Axel began to cry over the little merboy again. He cut him free of the shoddy, coarse net with his ceremonial dagger and removed the offending hooks, pulling him into his arms. He let his sobs loose without restraint. Neither the calls of gulls above nor the crashing waves on shore could drown out his voice. He almost could not bring himself to really believe it. The boy had died upon this shore, the one they had cherished together so long before.

"Roxas," he whispered, kissing the boy's forehead reverently, cradling him in a tender hold. "I'm sorry. I'm so...s-so sorry..."

It was his fault. His fault the boy had been snared this way. His fault that Roxas had never moved on. All he wanted was to keep him safe, but he had killed him instead. Killed him and left his heart to be dashed against the shore.

He did not forget, though he had always tried. Even when he had managed to finally pull away, before his wife could come and see what a mess he had become, his heart ached and yearned all over again; yearned for things that might have been if he had not turned the blonde away. He could never regret their meeting, but how he wished he could turn back tide and time, even if only to say on that day the words Roxas had begged him for, that might have been even a small comfort to him even as they parted ways.

I love you...

...


End file.
